Legacy Series: Dale Earnhardt Jr., Presented by John Deere

By

Pat DeColaNASCAR.com
October 12, 2017 at 8:57 AM

When NASCAR fans think “Dale Earnhardt Jr.,” they think “legacy.”

Following in the footsteps of his seven-time NASCAR champion father, Dale Earnhardt, Junior burst onto the scene as the calendar turned the page on a new millennium. Nearly two decades later, NASCAR’s most popular driver is riding into the sunset, hanging up the fire suit full-time at season’s end.

Junior has always looked up to his father, bonding through racing — after all, it’s in his blood. He wanted his respect, his attention and to succeed in the larger-than-life shadow his dad cast, making “The Intimidator” proud in the process.

NASCAR.com has teamed up with John Deere to bring you the three-part series, Legacy: Dale Earnhardt Jr.

Watch Part 1, Born to Race, above, as Senior brings the next generation of Earnhardt to the Cup level, and Junior delivers.

PART 2

“We’ve lost Dale Earnhardt.”

When Dale Earnhardt Jr. lost his father in February 2001, NASCAR wept with him. Since that turning point, the sport has moved forward with Junior, who withstood the test of some of the most trying adversity to become the face of NASCAR.

Six months following the tragic death of Senior, a still-grieving Dale Jr. continued to move forward and build his own legacy in his father’s honor by winning in July at Daytona — the very same track that took his father’s life.

The “Dale Jr.” persona was cemented in time that night and has grown bigger and bigger ever since.

NASCAR.com has teamed up with John Deere to bring you the three-part series, Legacy: Dale Earnhardt Jr.

Watch Part 2, Driven to Succeed, below, as Junior overcomes tragedy to find glory in tribute to his father at Daytona.

PART 3

With the final weeks of Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s full-time racing career upon us, the legacy he leaves behind comes into focus.

Over the course of his two decades-plus in the sport, Junior has shown how the son of one of NASCAR’s greatest can grow up and mature in the face of tragedy, using his father’s life lessons to become the man he is today.

Often heralded as an “everyday guy,” Earnhardt has become one of the most important voices in the sport, a mentor to young drivers at his JR Motorsports organization and, starting next year, a broadcaster.

Watch the closing chapter of the Dale Earnhardt Jr. Legacy Series presented by John Deere in Part 3, Driving Forward, below.